Improve Your English – Lesson 6: The Difference between Learn/Study
Students of English often reverse the meanings of these two words.
Learn means to gain knowledge or understanding of something by studying or by experience. Study can be a noun, when it means to use your mental power to learn about (to understand) something, or a verb when it means the act of studying.
Examples:
- Don’t say: I learn English every day.
- Do say: I study English every day.
This means I sit down and read my books, listen to tapes and practice hoping to understand it.
- Don’t say: I hope to study English well.
- Do say: I hope to learn English well.
This means I hope that I will understand and use the language well because my understanding of it is good.
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